As the
first day of September clicks off on the calendar, I begin to get very excited
for my favorite time of the year — Fall, and Oktoberfest! Let’s put it this way, being almost entirely of German descent and a lover of all things Teutonic,
Oktoberfest to me is like St. Patty’s Day is to someone named Patrick O’Malley.
I own lederhosen and I love drinking beer in them. After several years of
attending various Midwest Oktoberfest destinations (and having celebrated the
actual Wiesn in Munich), I humbly consider myself a good judge
of the “authenticity” of the fests available.
Chicago has no shortage of street festivals, but when it comes to celebrating Oktoberfest, they make a
half-hearted attempt. All in all, most people are drinking from a plastic
“stein” and eating bratwursts from the local grocery. Granted, the Germanic populace
isn’t as influential as the Irish and Italian communities in the city, but wearing
green felt hunter’s hats and drinking Beck’s does not an Oktoberfest make. So, in an effort to expand your horizons and
appeal to the European sense of adventure — you need to go to Wisconsin.
With 42% of the state of Wisconsin of Germanic descent, they take Oktoberfest very
seriously. And Milwaukee is the city you want to visit, with two festivals standing head and shoulders above the rest.
The first stop should be "Oktoberfest Milwaukee" (9/11-10/3) at Old Heidelberg Park in
Glendale, Wisconsin. This
suburb of Milwaukee hosts the oldest and most authentic Oktoberfest outside of
Munich itself. Wearing the traditional lederhosen and dirdls at this festival
is like someone putting on jeans and a T-shirt to go to a regular bar.
Everything from the Oktoberfest beer (Spaten, Hofbrau, Paulaner and
Franziskaner) to the food (Spanferkl, Rollbraten and Bienenstich (Bee Sting
Cake)), to the polka music and traditional Schuhplatter folk dancing puts a
smile on your face and a general feeling of Gemütlichkeit (geniality and
friendliness). Meanwhile, you can try your hand at various smaller
carnival-like games or enjoy a large Bavarian pretzel or bag of hot, roasted
candied nuts. It is truly an epic experience.
You may also want to try downtown Milwaukee’s "MKE Oktoberfest" celebration (10/1-4).
Situated in the beautiful Pere Marquette Park across from the
Hofbrau-franchised Old German Beer Hall (one of the sponsors), this equally exuberant
festival is initiated by none other than the Mayor of Milwaukee, tapping the
first wooden keg to get things rolling. This
harkens back to the same tradition in Germany of the Mayor of Munich tapping
the first keg. At any festival in Wisconsin patrons are even encouraged to
bring their own Maßkrug steins to be filled with the glorious beers produced by
Hofbrau. Later, if one is so emboldened, you can try your hand at
Maßkrugstemmen (beer stein holding). See how long you can hold a 1-liter glass
stein full of beer (about 6 pounds) straight in front of you. Think you can
beat the world record of 19 minutes? You’ll be lucky to get to one. At any
point, you can retreat from the tent’s festivities by walking around the
gorgeous park scenery right on the river.
I may be slightly biased, but will hazard to guess if you
take my advice and venture to Milwaukee for Oktoberfest and try one of these
Fests, you will not be disappointed. They truly are an experience straight out
of Munich.
